Last January, Luker and I bought knives for the people in the creative department we believed were leading the way forward. We had a few knives left over, and tonight I dropped one deep into my right foot.

It went through my leather shoe, sock, and sank three quarters of an inch into my foot, somehow missing any tendons.

Susan sewed it up. Since it's Halloween, she was dressed up as, I think, a Police Crime Scene?

On the way to school each morning, the boys and I get to drive through what we call the Tree Tunnel, a long section of NE Knott where the trees from each side of the street grow together over the road. That drive is like pizza. I will never get tired of it.

I'm almost embarrassed by how much I am enjoying Imprint, by Daniel Eatock. I can feel my heart beating faster. Creating something, putting it out there in the world, inspiring a reaction, a connection, from some other human being: that's it for me.

Next would be the process of creating. I love it so much.

Next would be how you can employ all of the stuff above to solve problems. Particularly motivating is solving hard problems for good people, people who create value for the world, open people who value creativity.

Next would be working with talented, smart, open people to do all of the above. Collaborating in all of this. Having to work hard to keep up. I love that.

Monday, October 27, 2008

My office is just a few blocks from the best bookstore on earth. Today I picked up a funky old copy of Alicia Bay Laurel's Living On The Earth. I also saw another piece of 12's promo campaign for Wordstock: a simple, elegantly straight forward idea: shelf signs promoting the 200+ authors appearing at Wordstock, each sign located underneath that particular author's books.

On election day, 12.5 is holding an art show at Backspace gallery called Drawn to Vote.

For the show, people were invited to create a personal commentary on voting directly onto their election envelopes. I was nervous about having my vote disqualified, but 12 checked with election officials and were told that people are welcome to use the envelope as a canvas as long as the message is non-partisan.

I hope this counts as non-partisan. Lately I've been listening to Stephen Mitchell's incredible translation of Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching, and I typed a few chapters related to leadership and governance.

Sunday, October 26, 2008

On our way to the downtown farmer's market today we noticed an old house moving down SW Columbia. It was the historic Ladd Carriage house. When it was threatened to be torn down so they could build a parking structure, preservationatists quickly assembled and the next thing you know, they move the house, build an underground parking lot, then move the house back to its original location on top of the garage. I love Portland.

The house made it through its move without a scratch. This sign post, not so lucky.

On the way out, near the enormous tree at the western side of the labyrinth, I noticed a spraypainted hunk of stone. It was a piece of brand advertising for the Oregon Bus Project, a progressive pro-democracy nonprofit started by Jefferson Smith.

I thought it was pretty nice - subtle and artful - and then I turned the stone over and found this.

A collaborative effort between the Bus Project and Ann Sacks tile? Co-op advertising to inspire you to get involved in democracy and then pick out new kitchen countertops? Genius.

Sunday, October 19, 2008

There's a group in Nashville trying to make sure that if you can't speak English, you can't receive social services. They call themselves English First.

My brother Ted asked me to come up with some sort of counter-point he could post at his Nashville business. Jimm Lasser and I, along with translation help from Elisa Silva and others, came up with this. It's gotten good response. The Kurdish community is translating it for a version for themselves.

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Since I've left 12, it's changed the nature of my relationship with my former students, some for the better. A few have dropped by in the couple of weeks I've been gone, and it's been nice. Since the roles have changed - no longer formally teacher/student, nor ECD/W+K employee - the conversation has become much more direct and open. Neither of us want or expect a thing from each other other than honest listening, maybe encouragement. Feels more like being a grandparent than being a parent maybe? Or maybe brother.

One student came by last week and took this photo of me in my studio, which he dubbed my monastic cave.

While he was here, we translated his name and came up with this. I've always felt that studying the meaning of your name gives you a clue as to what your path is in this world.

Saturday, October 11, 2008

The Nun's Story, starring Audrey Hepburn. The cover makes it look like kitsch but when Jeff Williams recommends something I watch it and I'm always glad.

Audrey Hepburn is great, but it's the story of the nun's ritual that is so bizarre and fascinating and humbling. Early in the movie, Sr. Margharita, Mistress of the Postulants, tells the new nuns, "We constantly strive toward perfection by inner silence. The ultimate goal of this silence it to make possible constant conversation with God. Therefore we do not talk loudly; nor do we engage in useless conversations."

Maybe this is my problem. Blogs are too often useless converations. I think I'll be quiet for a while until I have something to say.

Documenting the size of the exhaust duct for our new dryer, to take to the guy at the hardware store so I could buy the right kind of venting, and I take a second look at the photo and thought to myself, this is the most beautiful photo I've ever taken in my life. Printed huge on an Epson printer, it'd look gorgeous. If I can find a little oomph, I'll do that.